Video game movies and TV adaptations are notorious for being…well…bad, just plain bad. Yes, there are a few standouts, like the Tomb Raider series, or the fact that Resident Evil somehow went to six films, but the majority of them are pretty bad. And more times than not, if one was good, its sequel failed miserably. Such is the case with Mortal Kombat. The beloved fighting game series has had numerous attempts to be a hit in Hollywood and on TV, and it too has had mixed results.
The original movie was actually successful in its own right, and it played faithfully to many of the aspects of the lore of the game. Then, there was Annihilation, which…we don’t talk about. Then there was the cartoon…which we really don’t talk about. It also got two different internet series, which were a mixed bag. But hope came in the form of a modern movie being made, and rumors were spread that casting had begun for it. Turns out, that was false.
For in a tweet, the producer attached to the Mortal Kombat film noted this:
“Nothing is happening with the movie at this time, so all news is premature. Sorry!”
Sorry indeed, for this was the only update on the film that we’ve had in a very long time. And if they’re still not in the casting phase, you have to wonder if the film is ever going to be made at all.
You could argue that of all the fighting game franchises out there, Mortal Kombat would be the “simplest” to make. For most of the plot revolves around the tournament itself, with the characters bringing their own stories as to why they’re there. But, if you can’t nail the feel of the tournament, and the brutality of the fights, then it honestly shouldn’t be made. We’ll have to see how it goes.
